Mozzarella en Carrozza: Everyone’s Favorite Appetizer
At the Italian Enclaves Historical Society, we love analyzing the food that is eaten in Italian neighborhoods. In some parts of the country, there are dishes that are specific to a respective geography. There are also dishes that are universally eaten and referred to by the same name no matter what part of the country the dish is prepared. The following dish, mozzarella en carrozza, is brought to life and explained by our friend Brianna, who is an Italian American food blogger from Brooklyn, New York. You can follow her on Instagram: @OrganicItalian:
Mozzarella en carrozza, which translates to mozzarella in a carriage, is basically a fried mozzarella sandwich that when you cut into the center mozzarella comes oozing out. The crisp outside, the cheesy center and some good homemade marinara sauce gives this dish the Italian-American seal of approval.
Mozzarella en carrozza originated in Southern Italy but made its way over to the US with the migration of Italians. Today this dish can be found as an appetizer on the menu of almost every Italian American restaurant. While I’ve eaten mozzarella en carrozza dozens of times at restaurants, I had never tried my hand at making the dish until recently – it actually happened by accident. I had a half of mozzarella in the fridge that I needed to use, along with some leftover marinara sauce and a couple of potato buns that were on their last leg. As first, I was hesitant to use the potato buns but they were the perfect consistency, once fried, for mozzarella en carrozza. They’re also soft enough that when you push the buns together they create the perfect seal and no mozzarella escapes during the frying process. Needless to say, now I’m hooked!
My homemade mozzarella en carrozza
If you don’t feel like whipping up your own mozzarella en carrozza, and you happen to be in the area of Ortobello restaurant in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, I highly recommend popping in or ordering out some of their amazing food. Not only is all their food delicious, but they also make a monster of a mozzarella en carrozza that’s to die for.
Ortobello’s Mozzarella in Carrozza in a white wine and caper sauce
You can find my recipe for mozzarella en carrozza, as well as other great Italian American dishes, on my website: http://www.organicitaliannyc.com/recipes/mozzarella-in-carrozza